Bound By Blood (Muggle Meets Magic #2)

SEVEN - Floo Powder Power

When midnight finally came about, I'd nearly drifted off to sleep. Thankfully, Setsuna shook me out of my drowsiness and beckoned towards the door.

"Come on— let's go," she whispered. I nodded, and slipped out of bed. I threw on jeans and a sweater before grabbing my luggage, Chase, following her downstairs.

The stairs seemed so much louder in the dead silence of the night, and I bit my lip trying to avoid creaks and groans in the wood. When we finally made it to the bottom, we headed to her lounge room— which had a big, ancient fireplace. There were framed photos on the mantle, and a small cauldron set aside. I noticed a jar of herbs beside it. Setsuna reached past that and grabbed a small pouch.

"This is the floo powder— now, the way it works is that you have to pronounce clearly where you're going, whilst standing in the fireplace, and then throw the powder down. With any luck, we'll get to Hogsmede in one piece."

She offered me the pouch, and I nodded, taking it.

"Okay," I took a deep breath, and nerves of excitement tingled over me. At last— I was going to get back to Hogwarts. I'd get to see Callie, and Veronica, and Will! Heck, I'd even be glad to see Everette and Eleanor at this point.

I stepped into the fireplace, luggage in tow. The fireplace was low, so my head disappeared up the chimney a little. Then, I spoke as clearly as I could.

"Aberforth Dumbledore, Hogsmede."

The powder exploded at my feet, swallowing me in a green fire that made my heart leap in my chest. It felt like being sucked down a plughole and sent into the spins. I gripped my luggage and Chase's cage tightly, terrified of losing them.

I got dizzy quickly, trying to keep my eyes open. There was a roaring sound in my ears, and I began to feel really queasy, until finally—

Smack!

I tumbled shoulder first out of the fireplace, rolling onto the hard floor. I groaned, pushing myself upright. My luggage had clattered to the side, and Chase was screeching in his cage, which rolled idly across the floor.

Only moments later, the fireplace behind me burst to life again, as Setsuna came stumbling out. Her footsteps echoed in the quiet house, which was alight with sunlight. It was daytime in the UK.

I exchanged a glance with her as she regained her balance. She looked around, frowning.

"Is this the right place?" she asked softly, eyes wide. It must have been surreal— I doubted that Setsuna had ever left Japan, except to travel to various wizarding schools for the Spellmaster Championships.

"Yes, I recognize it," I replied.

"What in devil's name—"

A voice thundered from behind us, making us jump and spin around. In the doorway stood Aberforth, wand pointed at us. He stared at me with shock and confusion.

"Alyssa Castilian?" he asked, his expression softening. "What are you doing here?"

I grimaced sheepishly.

"Sorry to barge in," I said quickly, gesturing to my left. "This is Setsuna, by the way. She's from Japan."

Aberforth blinked, seeming stunned.

"Setsuna... this is my grandfather."

"Nice to meet you," she replied— in English. The words were a little shaky. I was charmed so I could understand Japanese, and she was charmed to understand English— but that didn't mean she could speak it fluently.